Aliaksandr Vaitseshyk before the trial at Baranavichy district and city court

The court of the district and the city of Baranavichy heard yesterday the case of local trade union activist Aliaksandr Vaitseshyk and ruled, as a result, to recover insurance payments in favor of the Ministry of Internal Affairs in the amount of 175 thousand rubles. The case was considered by Judge Vera Utlik. The lawsuit against the activist was filed by the Baranavichy interdistrict Prosecutor’s Office. The claim stemmed from a previous conviction of the activist over allegedly beating a police officer.

During the trial, Aliaksandr Vaitseshyk argued that it was the policeman who inflicted 22 bodily injuries on him, which was documented by a forensic examination of July 27, 2011. The conflict between the trade union activist and the police officer, who was wearing civilian clothes, occurred in the afternoon in his Vaitseshyk’s apartment.

Not considering the matter of conflict, Judge Vera Utlik supported the demands of the prosecutor to recovery from the activist 175,000 rubles in insurance payments in favor of the Interior Ministry.

“I received a statement of claim from Baranavichy interdistrict prosecutor just one day ahead of the start of the hearing. Considering this, I asked to put off the trial to a later date. My request was supported by the prosecutor and the representative of “Belgosstrakh” (state-owned insurance company). However, the Judge did not grant my request. After that, I tried to impeach the Judge,” said Aliaksandr Vaitseshyk.

The activist intends to appeal the decision to the Brest Regional Court.